First Presbyterian Church, Rock Hill, SC
Staff & Leaders

Larry Duncan

Rev. Dr. Larry Duncan The call to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament came early in my life, when Pastor Claude Deal of Trinity Lutheran Church, asked me as a six year old what I was going to be when I grew up. When I said I was going to be a cowboy, he responded, “No, you are going to be a minister,” and thus, the seed was planted. And from that day to this, God has watered, nourished and cultivated that seed until it has been brought to fruition. Upon graduation from South Rowan High School in China Grove, North Carolina, I enrolled at Davidson College, where I immediately fell in love with religious studies. Having graduated from Davidson with a B.A. in Religion, I attended Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia, which equipped me with an understanding of and an appreciation for the Reformed Faith. I had grown up in the Lutheran Church, but during my studies in seminary, I discovered that my own personal faith was more compatible with the Reformed Tradition than it was with the Lutheran faith. While at Union Seminary, my faith not only matured, but a relationship that I had with Licia Flores, a PSCE student, deepened, and after an eight month engagement, we were married in San Antonio, Texas. We have now been married for 38 years, and I have been ordained for 36 years. In those years, God has blessed our lives by calling us to wonderfully committed and loving congregations. At each church I served, I have learned things vital to my ministry. At Trinity Presbyterian Church in Jonesville, Louisiana, God taught me the importance of pastoral ministry and of developing close relationships with the people whom I served. At First Church, Shreveport, Louisiana, I gained administrative skills, which would serve me well in future congregations. At Westminster in Greenwood, South Carolina, a new church development, I had on-the-job training in evangelism as we grew the church from 90 members to over 200. At Lancaster, South Carolina, and at Summerville, South Carolina, I learned that ministry is a two way street as those congregations ministered to our family during times of grief and loss. And in Charlotte, North Carolina at Steele Creek Presbyterian Church, I saw the importance of interim ministry, and thus, answered God’s call becoming an interim minister myself. As an interim, I have served two rather large congregations in Richmond, Virginia and St. Petersburg, Florida, which were conflicted and had considerable difficulties. But with the help of God and the commitment of church members who took seriously the beatitude, “Blessed are the peacemakers,” those churches are now healthy, working toward the future God has in store for them, instead of rehearsing the battles of the past. I have also served Westminster Presbyterian in Greensboro, North Carolina, Potomac Presbyterian in Maryland, Saint Andrew in Raleigh, North Carolina, and First Presbyterian in Greenwood, South Carolina. Licia and I have two daughters and three grandsons all of whom live in Texas. My hobbies include golf, cooking and exercising.